When the Albanese government announced its “once in a generation aged care reforms”, many of us hoped that stories of neglect and poor treatment of older people were behind us. Sadly, that is not to be, with waiting times for home care packages soaring, leaving thousands of older Australians in limbo, many of whom require immediate assistance to maintain their independence at home.
The latest data shows that older people are waiting up to 15 months before they receive a home care package. This raises an important question: who helps older people while they wait?
GPs and councils used to be the first port of call when an older person needed assistance to live at home. Unfortunately, local councils exited aged care in droves because of changes in the way the Federal Government funded aged care.
Now, older people begin their ‘aged care journey’ by either phoning My Aged Care or, if they are computer literate, visiting its website.
The aged care system is now so complex that the government has employed Care Finders to help older people and their families ‘navigate’ it. Aged care wasn’t complex when local councils delivered the services.
The complexity of the system and the long waiting times means that thousands of older people are falling through the cracks, particularly those who live alone and/or who have significant cognitive impairment.
I was recently asked to advocate for Susan*. Susan lives alone, with no family on hand to offer support. She had been assessed by a Cognitive, Dementia and Memory Service twice, in April and August 2022. On both occasions, she saw a professor who wrote a detailed letter to Susan’s GP. Whose responsibility was it to follow up the suggestions in the letter? Her family?
Without family support, there was no follow-up.
In March 2023, an elderly friend became increasingly concerned about Susan’s safety at home and made an appointment for Susan to see her GP. The GP gave Susan a piece of paper with the list of actions she needed to take.
- Call CDAMS
- Call ACAS assessment
- Webster pack
- Chase MPOA
Susan did not know what the acronyms meant (who would?). Again, no one followed up the “to do list”.
In July 2024, Susan’s GP requested a comprehensive assessment via My Aged Care. In December, Susan mistakenly received a regional assessment. According to those working in the sector, this is a common mistake.
Comprehensive assessments are a gateway to home care packages and residential aged care. They need to be undertaken by staff who are clinically qualified.
Regional assessments, on the other hand, ascertain eligibility for lower-level services delivered by Commonwealth Home Support Program. They do not require staff with a tertiary degree.
Susan’s regional assessment was undertaken by a private company. Nearly $1.5 billion has been handed out to private companies under the Single Assessment System to conduct aged care assessments, according to contract details released last December by the Department of Health and Aged Care.
Susan’s assessment was riddled with errors, some quite serious. Her assessor claimed she was driving, doing her own shopping and able to prepare meals. None of these claims were correct, and made a significant difference to the home help to which Susan was eligible.
When I raised concerns about the errors with the Minister for Aged Care, I received the following response from the Department of Health and Ageing: “I would like to assure you that the Australian Government is committed to creating a better experience for older people in Australia seeking aged care services.”
Our taxes used to fund councils to undertake regional assessments and provide aged care services under the Commonwealth Home Support Program. Council services were in the main excellent, much appreciated by recipients, and meant older people with cognitive failure were much less likely to fall through the cracks.
Now that the majority of councils no longer provide aged care services, who is helping people like Susan?